How Much Do You Know About Chiropractic?

1. There is an age restriction when it comes to who can see a chiropractor.
A. True
B. False

2. Pregnant women can benefit from chiropractic care?
A. True
B. False

3. How many vertebrae make up your spine?
A. 12
B. 7
C. 24
D. 32

4. "I can "pop" my own back" or "my friend just pushes on my back while I lay on the floor". Is that okay?
A. Yes
B. No

5. I am not in pain/my pain does not stay real long/I can tolerate it. Why should I go to a chiropractor?
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6. The benefits one can receive from chiropractic care can be life changing?
A. True
B. False

7. All adjustments are painful.
A. True
B. False

8. Is it true that once you start seeing a chiropractor you have to go forever?

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Answers

1. False. Chiropractors see patients that range from an infant only a couple of hours old to elderly in their 80s and up. Using specific gentle adjustments for infants can help them with the following: Ear infections, Colic, Tonsillitis, and Reflux to name a few. Trauma to the spine after birth can be common, so a check up can be beneficial for the baby early on in their lives. Getting adjusted later on in life will help the person to function and move better with more freedom.

2. True. Pregnant women have so much to gain from chiropractic care. During pregnancy the pelvis can get misaligned and make the space for the baby smaller, making a pregnancy more difficult than it needs to be. With a protruding abdomen and an increase in the lumbar spine curve, it is possible to see postural changes take affect on the mother.

There is a 4% chance that a baby can become breeched during the 37th week of pregnancy or later. Chiropractors who use the Webster Technique have shown the baby to turn 82% of the time following treatment preventing an unwanted c-section. ( Go to Articles Tab to read about the Websters Technique.)

Getting checked during pregnancy can help the mom move better, calm nausea, keep pelvis aligned to help have a smooth pregnancy, and improve the overall pregnancy experience.

3. 24. There are 7 vertebrae in the cervical/neck region, 12 vertebrae in the thoracic/mid back region, and 5 in the lumbar/low back region.

4. No. Only Chiropractors are trained to detect subluxations and correct them. How do you know which vertebrae needs to move and if it was the one that moved? In most cases when a person has a subluxation, it will make the vertebrae above and below become hypermobile (increase movement) due to the fixated vertebrae in the middle. When you twist/ lean back in a chair to adjust yourself, you are moving the hypermobile segments instead of the subluxated vertebrae. This could speed up degeneration or whatever present damage exist in that area.

5. Your body has billions of neurons that course themselves all over the place. Only about 10% of the billions of nerves will receive pain and send it back to the brain. By the time you feel pain it could of been present for awhile without you knowing. It is like someone who has heart disease, they do not recognize it most the time till it is to late. It is a process that took place over time and progressively kept getting worse.

6. True. Chiropractic has shown benefits for all ages and various problems. Some benefits include: better sleeping, increased energy, increased movement, ability to perform things that use to be challenging, better bowel movements and much more.

7. False. Adjustments given properly should not be painful. Pain normally comes from the condition, not the adjustment. Some conditions can produce swelling and tenderness to touch which causes pain.

8. No. Cases that have been chronic for years without chiropractic care take longer to heal. Their can be so much damage and change to the area that it will require more care than an acute injury. It will take more than one visit to correct the problem. Once corrected and the Doctor feels it is stable enough, they will be able to decrease the frequency of visits. The goal is to get checked regularly to prevent future problems from occurring. Its like going to the dentist and getting your teeth checked, you go to prevent cavities and other problems.

Remember, there is no such thing as a spine transplant, so take care of the one you have.